Lightborn
by Bosque95
Summary: This is your typical demigod story... or is it? Corey Luzart lives in a world after the Second Titan War, yet when he gets to Camp Half Blood at age 16, he still hasn't been claimed... I'm not very good at summaries, but I hope you'll read and enjoy!
1. Chapter 1: My Not so Sweet Sixteen

**Author's Note: Hey guys! I know some of you won't read this, but some of you will, so I figure I might as well put something! This is my first fanfic, and my first attempt at ever releasing any of my writing online, so I'm sort of nervous, but oh well. Anyway, I will tend to ramble in these author notes, sorry. BUT! I just want to let you know that I appreciate any and all reviews you could send my way, even flames. I would, of course, prefer if there were no flames, but que ser**á,**** ser**á. Anyway, thanks all! ALSO! This is the first time I've uploaded anything to FanFiction, so if any of my editing is wrong, I apologize! I'll shut up now so you can read...**

Chapter One: My Not So Sweet Sixteen

I'm trying to not focus on what's going on right now. I'm trying to not hear the panting of a huge beast behind me or the whimpers coming from the demigod at my feet. I'm trying to pretend I'm not here, anywhere but here, back in bed, just having a nightmare. Hell, I'd even like to be able to pretend I'm sitting through one of Mrs. Mayler's lectures about the Punic Wars, but no such luck. I think it's getting closer. I'm stumbling through the dark, trying to run, to hide. I feel like I've been running for days, but it's only been a half hour. Well, I've been running from something or another for the last few weeks, but nothing quite so serious as this...

Sorry, you're probably confused now. I'll try to start over and take it slow. Here we go...

I had a pretty average life. Just my dad, Charlie Luzart, my step-mom, Amanda, and my usually annoying little half-sister, Sarah. And then there's me. I should probably explain who "me" is. I'm Corey Luzart. On that day when my life changed forever, i had just turned 16. My best friends, Aaron and Bryan, were about to come over and play some Brawl and hang out. Well, that never really happened... There was a brawl, but it wasn't between Kirby and Mario... I'm getting ahead of myself again. I'll go back just a little bit farther...

"Coooooreeeeeeey" I could hear Sarah just outside my bedroom door and knew I only had a few seconds before she let herself in. I rolled off the bed, glancing at the clock as I did so. 8:37. Why the hell was she trying to wake me up this early?

I'd just managed to hide under a blanket lying conveniently on my floor when she leapt in.

"Corey! Get up!" I could hear the blankets fly off of my bed with a loud swoosh and knew Sarah had just pulled them off.

"Corey?" She sounded puzzled.

I stood from my position on the floor and roared. Sarah squealed for a moment and then started yelling something about how she was five years younger than me and yet I was the immature one. I just laughed it off as I grabbed a shirt off the floor, sniffed it to make sure it wasn't too disgusting, and threw it on.

"So, would you like to explain why exactly you burst into my room at 8:30 on a Saturday?"

"It's your birthday, silly!" Sarah was a little too bubbly for me, especially in the morning. She continued gushing on, and sang "Happy Birthday" about 3 times, but I managed to tune her out, a trick I had learned after years of practice.

I started paying attention to her again just as she finished singing something about how I smelled like a monkey.

"It's my birthday, so you come in here and wake me up early. On the weekend. On spring break." I stressed the 'weekend' part heavily. Weekends were sacred for me. I had a very set ritual. Sleep in until 11:30, 12 o'clock, eat something (usually pancakes and/or cereal), then I'd log onto the computer, spend a few hours killing trolls on World of Warcraft with my best friends, and then sleep. Rinse and repeat. This system had been working well for years, and I didn't like when it was disrupted.

"Well of course I woke you up! Dad's plane leaves for Toronto in a couple hours, and mom has to go into the office, so we wanted to make sure they could give you your presents before they left!" It had always amazed me how Sarah managed to speak for so long without pausing or taking a breath.

I perked up instantly at the thought of presents. I jokingly sighed as I whined, "Do i have to get presents?"

"Of course silly!" Sarah was many things, but perceptive was not one of them. She was the most gullible person I knew and could never tell if you were joking or being sarcastic or not.

I simply walked out of the room, leaving the door open for Sarah to follow me. I just nodded as she rambled on about her plans over the break and how she just knew that David or Daniel or something liked her. I turned around to stop her as she rambled about what she'd been learning in history, something about napoleon or julius caesar or george the 3. I dont know, i wasnt really paying attention.

"As much as I very deeply care about everything that happens in your life, please, stop." Sarah again failed to pick up on the sarcasm in my request, but did fortunately stop. I turned to go down the stairs just as my bulldog, Vespacian, crashed into me.

"Oof! Yes, hi dog, i love you too, please get off now though!" I'd been knocked flat by his attack, and then been covered in slobbery dog kisses. I heard a sharp whistle from downstairs and Vespacian went running.

I followed him down the steps to the living room where I found my dad on the phone talking about light arrangements and salaries. That probably doesn't make much sense, but my dad is a movie director. He's still trying to make it big, but he's got a project coming up that he has high hopes for. That's why he's flying out to Toronto, filming starts tomorrow.

He looked up from his laptop as I came in. "John, can I call you back? Ok, thanks, bye!"

"Corey! How are you doing?" he wrapped me in a hug as he wished me a happy birthday. "Sorry, but we're going to have to make this quick. I've got to be at the airport in 20 minutes."

My step-mom walked into the room while he finished talking. "We've got some bacon and eggs ready for you, just the way you like them. Extra crispy and sunny side up, respectively."

"Thanks!" I walked over to her and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "So, Sarah mentioned something about presents?" I grinned, hoping my parents knew I was only joking, that presents weren't the only thing i cared about at the moment.

"Of course, of course," my dad said, ushering me into the kitchen where a plate of food and a glass of orange juice were sitting next to a handful of brightly wrapped presents.

Sarah just arrived in the kitchen, and ran to the table, grabbed a box with a huge purple bow on top, and handed it to me, informing me that it's from her and to open it first.

My dad smiled, "Give him some time to sit down at least!"

I did so, and opened the gift Sarah handed me. Inside is a... Well, I wasn't entirely sure what it is. It looked like it was just another box inside the first. The only thing is, there was no way to open it, no lid or anything. If only I had known then how very wrong I would be...

Confused, I glanced at Sarah questioningly. "What's this?"

Sounding far older and wiser than her 11 years would allow, she replied, "When the time is right, you'll know."

I must have still been tired from too little sleep that night, because I could have sworn for half a second her eyes flashed bright silver, but when I blinked again they were back to their normal dark brown.

Apparently I looked freaked out, because my dad gazed concernedly at my face.

"You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm goo-" I was cut off in the middle of my response by the sound of shattering glass and an ear-splitting screech from the living room. From where I was seated, all I could see were two huge shadows of two strange, deformed creatures dancing on the wall.

**Author's Note: Dun da da! Cliff hanger! Sorry, I couldn't help myself! I have about another chapter written, but I think I'm going to tweak it, so it's not quite ready to post yet. Anyway, I'm going to get off now, but like I said before, comments are very much appreciated! And, if anyone correctly guesses who Corey's divine parent is, you get a free virtual cookie! So, yeah! Bye people! I hope you enjoyed this and will come back again!**

**-Bosque**


	2. Chapter 2: My Life Gets Weirder

**Author's Note: Hello again everyone! I'm back, and with a brand new chapter for you guys! Sorry it took me so long, I've been busy with school and all that stuff, but this is probably about as fast as I'll usually update. I may not update 'til next weekend next time though, I've got a busy week coming up, but I'll see what I can do. I'd just like to thank all of you guys who reviewed, you all rock, especially famousBLUEwaffles, who not only has an awesome name, but was my first reviewer, and also Sporto, for being awesome and reviewing because I made her. :) Also, socrgrl14, no, she's not Artemis, but you're close. Anyway, I'll shut up now so you can read this. Sorry, it's a bit of a filler, but there were some things I wanted to get established.**

Chapter Two: My Life Gets Weirder

My dad for whatever reason seemed less surprised then the rest of us, and his initial reaction was to dig through the small pile of gifts. Evidently finding what he wanted, he handed me a small package about the size of a deck of cards, wrapped in shiny gold wrapping paper with a silver bow.

"Sarah! Hold it off for as long as you can! Amanda, get out of here. I know you're confused now, but I'll call you when I can and I'll explain, I love you, now just run!" Sarah nodded and ran towards the living room, though now it looked like she was starting to glow with a silver light.

Amanda looked confused, and asked my dad "but, honey, what's going on?"

Sarah stopped in the doorway, looked Amanda straight in the eye, and commanded her "Leave! Now!" and snapped in her face.

Amanda just looked even more confused and it looked like she was going to reply, but instead she just obeyed, running out the door and into her car. I could hear it get started and turn down the street as fast as it could go.

Finally, my dad looked at me and told me, "Corey! Hurry! We don't have much time! She can only hold it off for so long!"

"But, dad, what's going on?"

"I don't have time to explain! Now hurry up and get to the car, I'll be right behind you!"

I was about to protest, but he looked me straight in the eye and commanded me again, "Go!"

He sounded so desperate and afraid that I had to listen to him, I ran out the door and hopped into the shotgun seat of his F-150. I'd just buckled my seat belt when he opened the door and leaped in, this time holding a ring and the box that Sarah had given me as her gift.

"Ok, Corey, I'm not sure how much time your sister will be able to get us, so listen to me." He started the engine and took off towards New York City, a 15 minute drive to the north if you followed the speed limit, but as fast as he was going, we'd probably make it in 5.

"You must keep this box with you at all times! I don't know what it does, but Sarah got it from... Well, let's just call him a distant relative, and he wouldn't have given it to her to give to you if it wasn't important. And this ring, it's the one of two things your mom ever gave me before she left, she told me I would know when the time to give it to you was at hand, and well, it's not every day you have Achlys AND Melinoe breaking into your house, so I figured now was the time. And no, I can't tell you who they are. The more you know, the stronger you smell. Anyway, the other thing your mom gave me was that box you've got there." he pointed at the small gift he'd handed me before we left, still clutched in my hand. I hadn't even realized I still had it.

"Go ahead, open it, I'm sure you'll need it soon."

I tore off the wrapping paper, and then opened the box to reveal...

A car key.

"Uh, dad, as much as I appreciate the car, I don't think it's really that important considering our house got broken into, you had my 11 year old sister try to fight off the intruders, and now were traveling down the highway at-" I checked the speedometer "-130 miles per hour."

"It's not a car key. Well, it is, but... Press the panic button."

"Yes, I'm sort of panicking too, but pushing the button won't help us at all."

My dad sighed, exasperated, as he swerved to avoid an old lady going the correct way down the one way street we were traveling along, while we sped in the opposite direction. "Corey, don't be a smart ass and just do what I say!"

Stunned by my Dad's sudden snap, as he was usually a calm guy, I did what he asked, and with a quick burst of pure golden light, a six foot long, dark red staff with a gem-encrusted head about the size of Corey's fist just appeared.

"Huh, I'd always wondered what shape it would take." Dad glanced over at the weapon I was now holding, seemingly not the least bit surprised at the transformation that had just taken place.

I, however, was not so calm, and I just stared at my new toy, mouth slightly open. "Dad, what the hell is going on? I've gone with what you've said up until now, but this is just getting weird, with magical car keys."

Dad glanced at his GPS, back at me, and then up at the sky before he began his answer. "I suppose we're close enough now... Ok, you remember all those stories, Zeus, Herakles, Pasiphae's son?"

"Pasiphae's son? You mean the mino-"

"Yes! That one! Don't say names, they have power. Last time that particular beast was seen, well, it ended up alright, but only after a long and arduous quest, and I'd rather not get stuck in a similar situation."

"Wait, last time it was seen? You mean to tell me those stories, those myths, are real? I think you've lost it. There's no way the mino-"

"What did I tell you about names? Yes, they're real. Is it really so hard to believe? There's gotta be some part of you that knows it's true."

And, weirdly, he was right, it just seemed to fit. "Fine, all that's real. But, assuming we're not just insane, what does this have to do with me?"

"Well, you know how gods often bred with humans in the old myths...?"

"Yeah, but what's that..." My eyes widened as I realized what he must be getting at. "You mean my mom is a god?"

"Yes. Well, no. Both. I can't tell you! If you know the whole truth, well, others will know, and that just won't end well."

"Ok, fine. Whatever. What about Sarah? Is her mother sort of kind of maybe a god too?"

"Same as you. But I'm not... No, the less you know, the better. Let's just say that if you see her again, she's not who you think she is, and you must act like you've never seen her before. Understand?"

I'd sort of been distracted by the light flashing off of the gems in the staff, but got snapped back into it when dad grabbed the staff, examined it for a moment, and pushed a gem that looked exactly like the key's panic button, causing it to shrink back to its former form, all while he still managed to continue driving. Yeah, he's that beastly.

"Got it?" He asked a last time as he pulled over next to a hill in the middle of nowhere.

"Yeah, Greek gods, god mom, sister is unknown to me, and I have a magic car key."

"Ah, yes, don't tell anyone about that key, unless they know its true name."

"And what's its true name?"

"I haven't the faintest idea."

"Then how will I know when they say it?"

"I have even less of an idea of that, but we don't have time to figure it out. I think we've got at least 1 fury after us, though why Hades is… You know what, never mind. Just get over the hill and find the big house. You don't know anything though! Especially nothing about the gods or your mom! I'll have to distract them to make sure they don't try to follow you. SARAH!"

Out of nowhere, I saw Sarah's head pop up from the back seat. "Really, Charlie? I had them right where I wanted them, and then you call me? Oh, hello Corey." she paused and sniffed the air. "Uh, little bro, you better get going. He was right, 2 furies incoming AND the two demons I was dealing with. Get moving! Oh, and don't forget this." she tossed me her gift from that morning, the strange black box. "Good luck, brother"

I waved goodbye as I heard her yell "Hit it, Chuck!" ad the two sped away, I could swear I saw a flash of silver light, and a silhouette that looked suspiciously like me appear on the back window.

"Weirdest. Day. Ever" I began the trudge up the hill, but once I reached the apex, I knew it would only get weirder...

**Author's Note: Okay, I'm not going to keep you for long, but I hope you enjoyed, and sorry about the lack of action in this one. I just, like I said, had some stuff I wanted to get said, and I didn't want this to be like every other PJatO fanfic ever where there's some monster who comes and tries to kill our hero as they nearly make it to camp. Feel free to ask any questions in the comments, I'm still curious if anyone can figure out who Sarah and/or Corey are (there haven't been too many clues, but they're there). Also, if anyone has any specific monsters they'd like to see pop up, I'd be happy to throw them in if you'd leave it in a comment. Feel free to be obscure with it! Anyway, I've been ranting for a while, so auf wiedersehen.**

**-Bosque**


	3. Chapter 3: I Get Beat Up By a Girl

**Author's Note: Hey everyone! I'm sorry that I've taken so long to post my next chapter... This will sound like it's just a lame excuse, which it sort of is, but everything is true. Well, without rambling about it a bunch: I have been super busy. School has been sort of crazy lately, so that's my main reason. NOW! You guys will get to see my vision of what Camp Half-Blood should look like, a new character is introduced, and the plot thickens! Now, without further ado... Chapter 3!**

Chapter Three: I Get Beat Up. By a Girl.

There was what looked like a marketplace, bustling with about 30 or 40 people at the foot of a sizable hill right in between the woods behind me and to my right and left and the ocean I saw stretching before me. On the other side of the hill, closer to the water, I saw a ring of about 30 different buildings, ranging from a stately Greek palace at one end to what appeared to be a brightly splatter painted and tie dyed log cabin at the end.

All along the hill, up to the top, there were what looked exactly like ancient Greek temples, complete with marble columns and huge statues. Strangely, at the very top of the hill was what looked like an old ranch house that would have looked much more appropriate in a tiny town in the Midwest.

The strange house at the top of the hill looked to be the largest single building I could see from my current vantage point, so I assumed it to be the Big House that my dad had told me to go to, so I started walking that way.

However, before I could walk two steps towards the building, I was knocked flat on my back by a golden, thin and long serpentine figure, which I assumed was a dragon.

"Whoa there, boy! Don't eat him quite yet..." I heard a decidedly female voice coming from my right where, from the hissing, I gathered the dragon's head was.

"Thank you, miss! Your guard dog he-" I had been standing up again as I tried to introduce myself, but in an instant I felt something leathery wrap around my ankle, and I fell to the ground a moment later as the object, which I later discovered was a whip, was yanked on by this mysterious figure.

"Oof! We seem to have gotten off on the wrong foot. I'm-" My attempts to stand up and introduce myself were again thwarted, though this time my mystery assailant simply leapt on my chest and held a gleaming bronze dagger to my throat.

"You will speak when spoken to! How did you get here? Who are you? No satyrs reported that there would be incoming demigods today, so what are you doing here? Are you a demigod?" She stopped for a moment and stared into my eyes, clearly trying to intimidate me.

I could tell she was trying really hard to intimidate me, but all I could see in her bright blue eyes was fear, and the helmet she was wearing appeared to be about twice the size it should be, so I couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Her eyes narrowed, and the last thing I remembered before sinking into blackness was a sharp pain on the side of my head.

I woke up again what seemed like moments later, but I glanced at the clock beside me and realized it had been nearly half an hour. A beam of light struck the bed I was laying on from a window to my right, and I blinked in the bright sunlight for a moment before my eyes adjusted to reveal none other than my personal welcoming committee nearly asleep in a chair next to the bed I was in.

"Wow, are you people always that hospitable to newcomers? Also, bipolar much? First you knock me out, and then you put me in this swank room, I think you need to work on consistency."

My questions initially just startled my assailant out of her sleep, but she was nearly instantly alert, and with her oh-so-handy whip back in her hand.

"Whoa there, easy tiger. Calm down, I didn't mean to offend. In fact, I'll just be going, I don't need to bother you any more..."

I stood up, stumbling momentarily from the head rush, and then walked towards the door, waving sarcastically over my shoulder to the girl.

"I'll be seeing you aro- Oof!"

The oof was not, in fact, part of my regular speech, and had more to do with the fact that I had just run into a hulking monster, the likes of which I had never seen. Not only was the monster a good three feet taller than me, as I looked up, I realized that the humanoid figure had only one eye.

"Hey there, Mr. Cyclops. If you could just move aside, I'll be going now..."

The cyclops, surprisingly enough, responded by smacking me aside, and instead focused his attention on my assailant.

"Seriously? Is it national beat up Corey day today? This is just getting ridiculous!"

Evidently, this was no regular occurrence here, as the blond girl, who'd been sitting perfectly relaxed in her chair until I got smacked into the wall, again made her whip appear seemingly out of thin air, though I would later learn that her golden snake armband, when tapped on the head, would turn into the whip, but more on that later.

Anyway, like I said, the girl drew her whip and interrogated the cyclops, "What are you doing here? We have no enemies among the cyclopes, and, according to Olympian Decree 2017.3b, all monsters, including those of a peaceful nature, are not permitted to enter camp grounds unless carrying explicit written permission from either Chiron or the Olympians themselves, and, as I don't see any papers on you-" she was correct there. The cyclops was wearing only a loincloth, and if the papers were hidden there, I certainly didn't want them, "-I demand that you vacate the premises before I am forced to make you do so. Am I clear?"

The girl was showing bravery beyond why I'd expected, especially considering she was against a monster practically twice her size, but it didn't really work out like he expected.

The cyclops laughed, a deep, crackling chuckle not unlike the sound of a burning fireplace. "Oh, lightning child, when you have this-" the cyclops waved his massive hand, causing a trident to appear in his hand "-you tend to not bother with tiny little mortal rules."

"Poseidon's trident! How did you... You know what, I don't care! You stole property from my uncle, and I demand you return it before I vaporize you." The whip began to glow, accompanied by an electric buzzing and a faint sizzling sound, and then, without warning, an intense bolt of lightning flew straight towards the cyclops...

Only to be absorbed by the trident.

"Foolish girl!" The cyclops chuckled again. "You truly believed that the power of a child of Zeus could possibly rival that of the second most powerful weapon in the universe? You have a lot to learn... Now, I was sent here for a purpose, and now I have to kill you."

I had only now managed to recover from the devastating blow the cyclops had dealt me, and stumbled my way to the girl's side.

"If you want to take her out, you'll have to go through me too!"

I had no idea why I was helping her, but it seemed better than just laying there on the group, completely useless.

"What?" The girl's eyes widened. "Are you insane? You don't even have a weapon!"

"Oh, yeah... About that..." I dug in my pocket and located the car key my dad had given me earlier that day, and clicked the panic button, causing it to grow into my gem encrusted staff. "You probably should've taken my car key..."

The girl looked surprised, but then turned back to the cyclops. "Not the best odds, but it's better than nothing. You go left, I'll go right. Aim for the eye, it's their weak point. Ready?" she whispered, attempting to sound more confident than she really was.

"Ready," I replied, my voice cracking weakly as I did.

"Go!" And with her yell, my first, though certainly not my last, fight began.

**Author's Note: Aaaand, there we go. Chapter three. Okay, my life should slow down a bit now, but no guarantees. I'll try to update more. Sorry for the lack of action in this chapter, but hey, at least there was a little bit! Our new character (the girl, not the cyclops) will indeed be important to this story, and in the next chapter, not only does our naive young hero get into his first fight, camp experiences an event the like of which it has never seen... :) All I can say now is, I'm going to love writing the next chapter. I really need to stop ranting... Oh well. As always, questions and comments are appreciated! You all rock! Ciao!**

**-Bosque**


	4. Chapter 4: I'm Nobody, who are You?

**Author's Note: Howdy, everyone! It's been a while, hasn't it? I'm super sorry for making all of you wait this long, I never meant to have this happen. It's just that school got really crazy for a while... But now I'm out of school for a week and a half, and I hope to have at least one more chapter put up by the end of break, no guarantees though. I do promise, though, that I will not abandon this story. I would not do that to you guys. That has happened to me with some of my favorite fanfics, and I hate that feeling, and I don't want to do that to you. So, t**hanks to anyone who still reads this (especially Sporto, special thanks for sort-of betaing for me). **Anyway, I'll shut up for now and let you guys read this. Enjoy. :)**

Chapter Three: I'm Nobody, who are You?

The girl leapt instantly into battle, and I could quickly tell that she had much more battle training than I did. The extent of my training was about a year of karate back when I was 8, and I could tell by watching her that she had much more experience. Therefore, I let her do most of the work alone for the first couple minutes, occasionally shouting encouragement or suggestions when I felt they were necessary.

I got bored of just trying to keep up her spirits, which didn't seem to be helping too much as she wasn't gaining any ground on the cyclops in front of her, so I changed my topic of conversation somewhat randomly.

"So, you're pretty much the only person I know here, and it seems weird that I just keep referring to you as 'girl with whip' in my mind, so what's your name?"

She looked somewhat surprised at my question, though I don't know why. It's not as if I had just randomly said 'weasel cookie' or anything. Evidently, she chose to ignore my question. This may have been because she regarded it as a stupid question, though if I had to guess, I'd say the fact that she just got smacked with the not-pointy end of the trident (hey, shut up. It's not my fault I don't know the finer terminology for ancient Greek weaponry. Also, I was in the middle of a battle… Well, in the middle of watching a battle, at least. Cut me some slack, I'm new at this).

"Really? Can you please either help or shut up!" she snapped, panting lightly, while blocking a particularly nasty thrust with the trident by the cyclops with her dagger, barely managing to block and divert the weapon before it slammed into her face.

"Uh, sure..." I replied.

I stumbled into battle, managing to trip myself on an upturned chair before I'd even gotten started.

The girl, having to this point still ignored my question, blocked an attack from the pointy-end of the trident (the tines? I dunno… It's not like it was just a fork, but that's what they are… Sorry, I'm getting off track again) and paused a moment to catch her breath, while finally acknowledging my question. "Allison". I was somewhat thrown off track by this, but quickly realized she was telling me her name. "Allison, eh? Nice to meet you. Now, would you mind helping me up?"

Having just hit the cyclops, which had recovered from having stumbled backwards after its latest attack had been blocked, with a particularly devastating kick to the head, the girl… sorry, Allison, who had just looked over her shoulder and realized I was still on the floor, pinned by a chair (it was a heavy chair, ok… I'm not quite that weak), twirled and at the same time lashed out with her whip, grabbing the chair's leg and pulling it to the side, just enough for me to squirm out from underneath it and stand up. Unfortunately, she seemed to miscalculate the chair's weight and fell over herself, hitting her head on the edge of the foot of the bed.

"Damn it! Are you serious? I finally get something going for me, and then she knocks herself out?" I cried out indignantly.

I checked the cyclops to make sure it was still dazed (it was, although focus seemed to be coming back to its eye), before grabbing the bottle of some sort of liquid off the counter, splashing it into my newfound ally's face to try to snap her out of her state of temporary comatose. It seemed to work, as she woke with a jolt, though she still seemed a bit hazy eyed as her eyes widened.

"Corey! Behind you!" I barely had time to register that this was the first time she had in fact called me by my name since we met earlier that day, as I had to turn, do some sort of somersault to the side that made me feel like a ninja, but probably looked ridiculous, and throw my staff up all in the same movement, due to the trident about to impale my spine.

I was just able to stop the trident, though the middle prong (that's better than tine… right?) did manage to pierce my shoulder, and I fell back, screaming in pain, as the wound burned with cold and felt as though someone was grinding salt into the open wound.

The cyclops laughed again, a harsh, burning sound filled the room. "Did you fools honestly think that you could defeat Polyphemus?" I heard Allison, evidently slightly more conscious now, gasp, and I racked my mind, trying to remember where I had heard that name. The cyclops went on to redundantly say, "Polyphemus is the greatest of the cyclopes, the greatest son of Poseidon to ever live! Nobody can defeat Polyphemus!"

As soon as I heard Polyphemus say Nobody, I realized where I knew him from, and had an idea. I paused for a moment, not noticing the pain in my shoulder for a brief second. "Wait... Wasn't Nobody the name Odysseus used when he defeated you during his voyage?" I grinned through the pain. "I guess Nobody can defeat you."

The cyclops screamed, and I heard shouts from outside the low lying window I was lying next to, through which sunlight came, bathing my upper body in a pool of warm light. I glanced out the window and saw various people, looking to be anywhere from 10 to about 30 in various stages of undress running towards the house I was in. _Finally_, I thought to myself.

Allison, evidently still too weak as a result of her head injury to stand, continued on the conversation with the cyclops as she inched her fingers towards her whip, hidden from the cyclops by the pile of blankets that had been thrown off the bed. "Oh, no, you're wrong, Corey."

I couldn't help myself, even in the middle of a battle I had to prove myself right. "No, actually, in the Odyssey, Odysseus calls himself Nob- Ouch!" Allison punched me in the arm, still bleeding from the stab I'd received. As I looked at her with a 'what the hell?' look on my face, I was greeted with an intense glare that screamed 'shut up before you get us killed!'.

"Oh, yes, back in the olden days, the cruel Nobody punished Polyphemus for just trying to get a meal, and that wasn't nice, was it?" the cyclops grunted his affirmation, and, at the pleading look in Allison's eyes, I nodded my agreement.

"No, the mean Nobody used his evil tricks to blind poor Polyphemus, by poking him in the eye with a stick." Here, Allison paused and looked pointedly between my staff and me, until my eyes lit up with understanding and she continued.

"But, the bravest, smartest, and most intelligent cyclops ever couldn't be beaten forever, oh no. Years later, he finally sank Nobody after Nobody stole his Golden Fleece." I had no idea what she was talking about now, as I couldn't remember this from the old Greek legends my Literature teacher taught me, but I had reached my staff and had a firm grip on it, and was just waiting for her signal.

"Polyphemus is smart! He crushed Nobody! Father Poseidon finally rewarded Polyphemus's work! Father made Polyphemus see again! Polyphemus will show Poseidon how good Polyphemus is... But first, Polyphemus needs to kill the light and the lightning. Then father will make Polyphemus king!" Polyphemus evidently grew tired of Allison's story and his own strangely in-third-person speech, and attacked, lunging at her with his trident.

"Now!" she shouted. I sat up instantly, and pointed my staff at the cyclops, intending to throw it and hopefully blind the monster. I realized too late that I was exactly that, too late. Just as the prongs (actually, I don't suppose that's any better than tines… Oh well, shove off) of the trident were about to plunge into Allison's neck, the gems on the head of my staff caught the light, and reflected a white-hot beam of light at the creature, hitting him in the eye, causing him to drop the trident, letting it fall to the ground right next to Allison's hand. Allison grabbed it and held it protectively as I warily stood, hoping the monster had been beaten.

Polyphemus screamed so loudly that I was sure he could be heard all across the state. I could now hear people up the stairs, a few forerunners already banging on the evidently locked door. "Who has done this to poor Polyphemus? Polyphemus was told this would be easy!"

The girl and I evidently had the same thought, as we looked at each other and grinned, simultaneously saying "Nobody."

As the cyclops screamed in mixture of anger and pain, and likely cursing us in some ancient language, I knocked him down by hitting the back of his knees with my staff before grabbing the dagger Allison had dropped on the floor and plunging it into the monster's eye socket.

The cyclops dissolved, leaving only an eye patch and a pile of what I realized was salt on the floor where he once lay. I collapsed backward from emotional and physical exhaustion onto the floor as the door was forced open. I managed to stay conscious just long enough to hear a tremendous crash and feel the earth shake as the trident disappeared from the girl's grasp and I sank into unconsciousness for the second time in as many hours, though this time I wasn't alone, as my mysterious new battle partner, Allison, sank into unconsciousness simultaneously.

**Author's Note: The plot thickens! Why is Polyphemus attacking Corey and Allison? Why did I name her Allison? What is Poseidon doing, giving a crazy cyclops his trident, with its tines/prongs/whatever? Why does Polyphemus talk in first person? What was the mysterious shaking at the end? Where did the trident go? Just what ARE the pointy bits on tridents called? Will I ever stop asking questions? I can only answer some of those. I named her Allison because I couldn't remember her initial name, and I don't actually know anyone named Allison. Polyphemus talks in third person because I felt like putting that, and it amused me. I don't know what the pointy bits are called, but free virtual weasel cookie if anyone can tell me. And yes, I clearly stopped asking questions. Please review! Questions, comments, suggestions, even flames. It's nice to know people read my story, so let me know if you do. Anyway, I believe this was my longest chapter yet, so I'm going to shut up so you people can get on with your lives. Tschüß!**

**-Bosque**


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